River-Friendly in the Rough

The previous owner of this home initiated the transition from a lawn dominant front yard to a river-friendly one. An outdoor seating area with shade structure was added to take advantage of the view of the creek and open space. Remaining planting areas were converted to beds of perennials. Although beautiful, the new owners, a busy family, have found its upkeep to be somewhat daunting. What you see today is a ‘greener garden’ in transition.

Invasive Mint has spread throughout the left side of the garden and the owners are slowly gaining control of this pesky plant. Other high maintenance plants have been removed and will be replaced in coming months with suggested UC Davis Arboretum All Star plants. These plants will be more suitably irrigated with the existing soaker hose system.

This tour location was selected for a variety of reasons. The Elk Grove Greener Gardens Project wanted to show that not all gardens are perfect, nor are they complete. They are often in transition as homeowners educate themselves and move towards a more eco-friendly approach to their front yard.

We also felt that it was important to make the direct correlation between what you do in your landscape to the health and water quality of our local waterways. Laguna Creek flows through this neighborhood and provides open space, wildlife viewing and recreation. The preservation of this valuable resource is one of the goals of the Elk Grove Greener Gardens Project.

Although this river-friendly landscape is ‘in the rough’ it is on its way to become more eco-friendly and water-wise!